


(when you hold me in your embrace)

by FaileGaidin



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M, First Kiss, First Time, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Outdoor Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-21
Updated: 2020-10-21
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:49:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27128809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FaileGaidin/pseuds/FaileGaidin
Summary: Standing on top of that RV, staring out into the darkness, Carol can't help but think back to a similar night ten years ago.
Relationships: Daryl Dixon/Carol Peletier
Comments: 1
Kudos: 38





	(when you hold me in your embrace)

**Author's Note:**

> There was no beta and I was high when I wrote this. So, really...we'll be lucky if it's anything more than a rambling mess.

Carol stared out into the darkness, breathing in deeply as a breeze moved past her. She appreciated the safety and security of Alexandria, but there was a part of her that was always longing for this - the open road, the open sky, and the peace that came with just being alive in a world that wanted nothing more than to kill you in the most painful and brutal ways it could.

This was only temporary, of course. As much as she would have loved to get on the bike with Daryl and head for New Mexico, they still had things to take care of here. Their time would come - at least, she hoped it would - but she knew that neither of them could ever leave their family in a lurch. 

She took another deep breath and tried to focus again on the landscape in front of her. She wasn’t on guard duty - Aaron was handling that down below somewhere - but she had still climbed up on top of their RV. Maybe it was habit. Maybe she felt a little claustrophobic being surrounded by everyone around the campfire.

And then again, maybe she had been hoping that he would join her.

She felt his presence just before she heard the scuff of his boot against the first rung of the ladder. Tension that she hadn’t even realized she’d been holding eased out of her neck and back and Carol reached up with her left hand to gently massage the opposite shoulder.

“You alright?”

She smiled at his voice, glancing over her shoulder at him. “I’m fine.”

Daryl came up to stand beside her, looking her up and down in that measured way of his, and nodded his head at the spot she was still massaging. “You sure?”

Carol shrugged. “I just wish once in a while we could rescue a massage therapist or something, you know?” she asked, a playful smirk tugging at the corners of her mouth.

“Pfft,” he spat. “Don’t need no professionals for that.”

Carol raised an eyebrow at that, a quick retort on her tongue, but Daryl reached out and just starting moving her round so that her back was to him. Both of his hands came up and over her right shoulder, the pads of this thumbs digging into the shoulder blade. 

Her eyes slid shut at his continued touch, and her mind danced back to a similar moment from almost a decade before. They had been standing on top of a car flipped on its side, and they’d been looking out over their new home at the prison. His offer to help with her shoulder then had been entirely unexpected, but she had never forgotten the way that his fingers felt against her. 

That had been a too-short moment, though, and this one…this one just kept going on. Daryl seemed completely focused on the motions of his hands and Carol was just left there, taking it in, her knees threatening to give out on her. All these years later and Daryl could still make her completely undone with just a simple touch. 

One of his thumbs hit a particularly tender spot and her stomach swooped, dropping so low that she could swear she felt it in her toes. She exhaled slowly to fight back the moan building in her throat, but she was only somewhat successful. His ministrations stopped after that, his hands falling back to his sides as he looked out into the night.

Worried that she had shown her hand, Carol kept her voice light, trying to break the tension that she was sure was building. 

“Wow, still a man of many talents, I see.”

Daryl let out a small half-chuckle, but he didn’t turn back to face her. Carol’s mind flashed back on that previous night again; maybe she could head that tension off by recalling his mind to that encounter.

“Pretty romantic,” she said, looking at him with a twinkle in her eye. “Wanna screw around?”

Daryl barked out a laugh, and she could see in his eyes that remembered. He shook his head and her and then turned back toward the ladder. “C’mon. Food’s almost ready.” He paused. “I’ll go down first.”

A girlish giggle escaped her lips before she could stop it. “Even better.”

She thought that Daryl would finish the reenactment with the same “Stop,” that he had all those years ago. Instead, she found herself listening to something different as he climbed down the ladder first.

“That guy was such a damn coward.”

Carol stopped, still standing on the RV, and frowned at him in confusion. “What guy?”

“Me,” Daryl said, pointing at his chest as he looked up at her. 

“What do you mean?”

“I’m just saying that I’da played that differently if I hadn’t been such a damn coward.”

Something that felt suspiciously like hope sprang up deep inside of Carol, but she forced it down, swallowing a bit more roughly than she’d been expecting.

“Oh yeah?” She heard the baiting in her voice. “How so?”

She thought she saw him take a deep breath before he shot back with, “How ‘bout you get your ass down here and find out?”

Her desire hit her like a punch to the gut, and for just a moment, Carol couldn’t breathe. Daryl had gotten bolder and more comfortable over the past few years, but she’d never heard him flirt so outrageously. Shaking her head a bit, she turned and lowered herself down onto the ladder. Daryl didn’t back up and give her any space like she had expected him to, and Carol found herself herself pressed right against him once she had hopped down off the ladder. She turned slowly until they were face to face, his hands still on the sides of the ladder so that she was completely bracketed by his body.  
They stared at each other, Daryl searching her eyes for something before nodding to himself.

“I’d do somethin’ like this,” he said quietly.

He leaned in slightly, hesitating for just a second before closing the distance and brushing his lips against hers. Even though this was exactly where she had wanted things to go, Carol couldn’t stop the sharp gasp that punched itself out of her throat. At the reaction, Daryl hesitated, lips hovering over hers uncertainly.

So this time, Carol leaned in. She kept her kiss gentle, just as his had been, but she didn’t stop with just one. She brushed her lips across his over and over again, giddy with the fact that he was starting to meet her in the middle, their kisses becoming firmer.

Carol hadn’t even realized that her mouth had opened until suddenly her tongue brushed against his and they stopped pulling away. Daryl let out a small noise, surprised, but pleased, and Carol felt the last of her hesitations sliding off into the darkness. She reached forward, letting her fingers tangle with the fabric of his shirt and then she slowly tightened her grip, keeping Daryl close and pressed against her.

He seemed to want the same thing; his hands slid down the sides of the ladder until they fell away altogether and found their new home pressing against her back, pulling her body even closer. Carol’s fingers quickly left the front of his shirt and her hands slid up over his shoulders, one tangling with his hair to remove any lingering space between them.

God, he felt so good against her and around her. Carol could be honest with herself now about how long she had fantasized about his body sliding against her own, but the reality was far heavier and more arousing. Heat radiated from his body and set her own skin ablaze as hands did nothing more than spread the gasoline even further. He was pressed against her so completely that she could feel his own arousal through their clothes. Carol rolled her hips tentatively, just to see if she could get a reaction, and Daryl moaned, the sound swallowed by their kiss, and pressed his hips right back up against hers.

She had just started to slide her left foot up, with every intention of wrapping her leg around him, when the ladder at her back was suddenly gone. Carol didn’t remember her feet every leaving the ground, but Daryl had to have lifted her up to press against the smooth side of the RV. And now he pressed up against her even harder, causing Carol to groan as she panted against his chin. The smoke and the smell from the fire, dancing around them on the warm breeze, seemed to settle in Carol’s blood and she felt heady. Daryl was wrapped around her. He was everywhere and it felt like a thousand needles were ready to erupt from her skin.

She started to drag her foot up again, and this time he got the message. Daryl pulled until her thigh was right up against hip and he dragged his body against hers in a slow roll that had both of them letting out little noises that seemed like gunshots in the dark. Chasing that feeling, Daryl did it again and then a third time, and Carol started to think that they might not even get their pants off before it was over.

Daryl seemed to have a different plan, though. Setting her leg back down, and with a confidence she had vastly underestimated in her fantasies, he slid his hands around to the top of her jeans and fiddled with the button, being obvious with his intentions in case she wanted to drive things in a different direction.

Carol wouldn’t have dreamed of putting any kind of stop to this. She pulled back just far enough so that she could nod and then she dove back in, kissing him like she wanted to make up for the ten years of kisses they could have had. 

She got so lost in it that she missed Daryl undoing her button and sliding down the zipper. She came back to herself with a jolt as one of his fingers ran a fiery line against her through her underwear. Carol pulled her head back just a little and shivered.

“Daryl,” she whispered, her voice breaking in the silence.

He nodded, a tiny broken sound escaping from his throat as well. He kissed her once more, fiercely, and then his lips were gone, moving away from her mouth and down the center of her body. Carol watched him lower himself to his knees in front of her, brain shortcutting at the sight of Daryl Dixon between her legs. He looked up at her once more as he pressed a chaste kiss right above her panty line and then he looked back down, focusing on the task at hand.

And oh god, could he focus. Carol barely had time to feel the breeze against her suddenly bare skin and then he was just there. It had been awhile since Carol had been intimate with anyone, and she was tempted to think that, even happily married to Ezekiel, she had never been touched like that. 

His tongue slowly rolled against a sensitive spot and Carol threw her head back until it bumped the side of the RV, struggling to keep her noises to a minimum. She consoled herself by digging her fingers into Daryl’s hair and holding his face right up against her. He groaned, the sound immediately swallowed by her body as it moved through the very core of her. 

She wanted to focus on the moment and commit every second to memory. A small voice in her head, one that sounded suspiciously like the Carol from ten years ago, asked her if she was sure this would ever happen again. What if this was it? What if, after this, she had to go around pretending not to know Daryl in every intimate way?

The determination of his fingers and tongue quickly wiped all of that away, though. Carol found herself riding the sensations with reckless abandon, letting it fill her until she felt like she would burst.

Her orgasm hit so suddenly it sent a shiver up her spine and made her toes curl. Daryl moved enough to press soft kisses to her inner thigh, his hands running up and down her hips soothingly. She was glad that they were there - she wasn’t convinced they weren’t the only thing still holding her up. Looking down at him, moved her hands until they were cradling his face.

“Daryl,” she whispered, trying to put the depth of her feelings into that one word.

At least part of it didn’t translate, though, because she saw the hesitation start building up his walls again. His eyes started to go neutral and his hands stopped moving over her skin. She shook her head and dragged him up to his feet, kissing him deeply as soon as she could reach his mouth. This man had been putting himself on the line all damn night. There was no way she was going to let his insecurities about anything take this away from him. It was only a moment’s work to get him to slide his arms around her back and relax against her. Which is exactly when Carol set her own hands to working on the button and zipper of Daryl’s pants. He gasped sharply when her fingers trailed over him through his underwear, and Carol suddenly realized that he was shaking. He was on a hairpin trigger and she wasn’t going to leave him wanting. 

She gentled her kiss as she deepened it, slowing everything down a few notches even as her hand slid inside the fabric and took a hold of him. This time, Daryl let out a low moan, dropping his head onto her shoulder as he bucked up into her hand. With her other arm around his lower back for support, Carol set a firm, steady pace. She hoped that there would be a chance for teasing next time. She hoped that there would be a next time.

His grip on her hips was tightening in spasms, and she thought that she might have some bruises there tomorrow. The thought only made her focus harder on him. She let her mouth drift down to his ear and she started whispering. Telling him exactly what she wanted to do next time.

Daryl’s body went rigid as his orgasm overtook him and she stroked him through it. A slight hitch in his throat let her know that the pleasure had turned to overstimulation and she reluctantly let go.

“Here,” he said quietly.

Carol looked down to see him pull a bandana from a pocket of the pants that were still around his ankles. Instead of handing it to her, though, Daryl took her hand in his and wiped it clean, sneaking little glances at her as a smile tugged at his lips. Carol’s eyes never left his, so that he would see her matching expression every time he looked up. 

Their hands a little cleaner, Daryl bent down. But instead of pulling up his own pants, he took care of Carol first, getting everything where it belonged and then refastening the zipper and button. Tears pricked at Carol’s eyes even as she continued smiling. What had she ever done to deserve this man?

Before he could make his next move, Carol bent down just as he had a moment earlier and took a hold of his pants. Slowly, keeping eye contact with him the entire time, she stood back up, pulling his pants with her. She heard his breath catch and his eyes darted down to her mouth. Carol pressed her lips to his slowly, but chastely, before letting her attention focus solely on tucking him back into his pants and doing them up again. She could feel him watching her intently and when she was done, he immediately took her hands in his and held them tightly.

“Hey,” he said lightly.

Carol beamed at him. “Hi,” she whispered. She was sure that he could see the tears still in her eyes, but she didn’t care.

He stared at her for a moment longer and then just dove in. “So about that next time,” he said, puffing up his chest a little as he put on a brave face. “You mean that?”

She lifted his hands up until she could press gentle kisses to his knuckles and then bumped his nose softly with her own. 

“Yes,” she whispered back. 

Her cheeks were starting to hurt from all the smiling, but she couldn’t get enough of it. Even as Daryl pressed more kisses to her mouth, she couldn’t shake that smile. 

A sudden voice in the darkness startled them apart, both relaxing when they realized that it was just Michonne calling them to the fire for dinner. Daryl nodded and kissed her hands again, but before he could take a step, Carol gently grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him back. “What has gotten into you tonight?” she asked in wonder.

Daryl shrugged. “Decided to finally man up, I guess.”

“But why now?”

Daryl chuckled, nodding his head. “‘Cause I overheard you and Michonne talkin’ the other day. ‘Bout me.”

Carol just stared at him for a moment before her eyes widened in recognition. One hand flew to her mouth in shock.

“No!” she whispered fiercely. 

“Yep.”

“No!”

“I could repeat some of the more colorful parts if you think I’m a liar.”

“Oh my god,” she groaned, hands coming up to cover her eyes. “That’s embarrassing.”

Daryl shook his head. “I don’t think so. Pretty damn hot came to mind, though."

Carol uncovered her eyes and gave him a look. “So you had to hear me describe my attraction to you in graphic, explicit detail before you’d make a move on me?”

He shrugged. “Didn’t think you’d ever feel that way ‘bout me.”

The smile fell from her face and Carol cradled his head in her hands, making sure that he was looking her square in the eye. “I’m yours for the taking,” she said firmly. “Always have been.”

He nodded and pulled her close again, lips seeking hers. “Me too,” he murmured.


End file.
